


Pop Legend

by oliviacat3



Category: Original Work
Genre: Ambition, Dreams, Idols, Music, Pop star, Self Confidence, Singing, Songs, inspire, performing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-19
Updated: 2019-12-29
Packaged: 2021-02-13 10:36:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 23
Words: 19,691
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21492934
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/oliviacat3/pseuds/oliviacat3
Summary: Georgia has a dream. She knows that anything is possible if she works for it. But she doesn't think it's possible for her life to turn around in a mater of days. Suddenly she is living her dream, but everything is not what she thought it would be.The record label is meant to be called Paradise Recording Studios. I have edited most of it but I may have missed a couple. If you see any of the wrong name, can you let me know? Thank.
Relationships: Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Kudos: 1





	1. The Gig

I sling my guitar over my back and unlock the door.   
"Bye, Mum. I'll be back by 10." I yell down the hallway. She always worries about me so, although I know I'll be done by 9, I say 10 in case I get held up. I walk out the door and down the road to the football stadium.  
Arriving, I go straight to Mark.   
"Hi, Mark. I'm here because you asked me to perform..."  
"Ah, Georgia. Yes, I heard you singing at school and thought it would be great if you could do a few songs at half time."  
"Right. Does it matter what I do?"   
"No, but it would be good to know what you have in mind."  
"I thought I could do some songs and medleys I've heard Em Lewis do, and one or two of my own songs."  
"Great. Will you need anything else apart from you guitar?"   
"It would be good if It could use the piano as well, if that's OK."  
"That's fine. I'll see you after the match, Georgia."  
"Yeah. Thanks, Mark."   
He gives me a thumbs up and walks away, so I turn and make my way to the box that has been reserved for me. Although I hate football, Mark got me a box so that I wouldn't be harassed after my performance. A box makes it sound really posh, like a box in an arena, but really it's the same as the rest of the stadium, just isolated. I'm going to be so lonely up here. The commentator starts speaking and the crowd falls silent. The football match starts, which means two things. The first is that this is the start of 90 minutes of boredom, and the second means that ignoring the football leaves me to my own devices, so I start feeling really, really nervous. I know the football stadium is really small compared to somewhere like Wembley, but I know loads of these people because it's my home town. 

I try listening to music, but soon discover that that just makes me even more nervous, as I will be singing. I open up Instagram, but even the shallow people who post everything in their lives on their can't distract me. I roll my eyes at some of the things on there. Some people are so attention seeking. Eventually, I end up opening up Archive of our Own and reading the story I'm following at the moment. It's a Star Wars fanfic that Vicky recommended to me and it's soooooo good. 

All too soon, it's half time and Mark gets the microphone off of the commentator and introduces me. "And now, a special surprise: a performance from Georgia Westbury. I walk nervously onto the side of the pitch, my guitar strapped round my shoulders, and play the opening chords of 'Search For My Heart' by Em Lewis.

Finishing my first song, the crowd claps until I think they can't clap any more. I immediately move on to the next song, this time an original one called 'What I Wish.'   
"That was Search For My Heart' by Em Lewis. Now I'm going to play an original song called 'What I Wish'." The crowd starts cheering as I start to sing.

"I'm dreaming of what I wish,

I'm desiring what I wish.

I'm hoping that what I wish

Will come true today.

It could be anything...

Be about anyone...

Take you anywhere...

Today." I finish the song to a standing ovation, something that's never happened before, and turn to the piano.

"Join in if you know the words."  
Let it Go is one of the most well known songs from any film. It inspired pretty much everyone in so many different ways, so everyone usually knows the words, and this audience doesn't fail. They know all of the words, so the stadium echoes with their excited singing. I launch straight from the end of that into Pretty Money Piano Version by Em Lewis, using a few chords to change key.   
I've got the whole crowd captured. This is what it must feel like to be a famous pop star, but with bigger crowds and your own songs.

As my penultimate song, I play my other original one: Shoulder to Cry On. It's my favourite one of my two because it's based off real life, and basically saying don't give up when you feel down.   
"I need a shoulder to cry on  
I need some moral support..."

My final song is Babe, Let's Party by Em Lewis. I pour my heart and soul into the music, and imagine having her stood next to me, singing with me.

This song gets the best reaction from the crowd. I don't know if it's because of how I played it, or because it's their favourite song, but they cheer and clap and scream for ages.

With the performance over but adrenaline still coursing through my veins, I make my way back up to my box. Pausing whilst the commentator starts up again to sort out my guitar and my music, I then pick up my book and read until the end of the match.

"Georgia, it's Mark." I jump in surprise and spin round.

"You scared the life out of me! Also, you promised I would be able to sing in the dug out, but the piano was on the pitch! And you introduced me as Georgia Westbury. You promised I could have my stage name. Anyway, did you think my performance was OK?" He looks at me with that look that people give you when they think you have a very low opinion of yourself. I'm really nervous about how it went, because I couldn't really hear my own voice over the stadium; I could only hear enough to hit the right notes. 

"Are you done now, Georgia? I think it was great. You need to have more confidence in yourself. Anyway, I have someone here who also thought it was great, and wants to meet you." Wow. I didn't think I'd have that effect. "This is Mr Burns." A man walks through the door who looks suited more for a political meeting than a football match. He is wearing a dark suit, even in this hot weather, and has a blue tie around his neck.

"Hello, Mr Burns. I'm Georgia Westbury." I look at him with a nervous glance, which he notices.  
"Don't worry, Georgia. I'm here for a very good reason."


	2. The Offer

"Don't worry, Georgia. I'm here for a good reason." The first thing that runs through my head is 'what good thing is related to my performance?' I thought my performance was mediocre, and my voice was really reedy, but I guess people have different opinions. If my mum were here, she would say how I should try new things and not put myself down so often. Mr Burns seems to read my mind, as he says,  
"There are lots of good things related to your performance and you should at least think it was OK. I am here to discuss a proposal with you, but I need at least one parent or guardian here as well. Can you ring them?" I want to keep the argument going, but really can't be bothered. I once had an argument with one of my Dad's friends about whether I was being modest or actually insulting myself, but he left before we finished and I had the last say, so I always tell everyone that I won.   
"Yeah that's fine. Give me a sec." I pull my phone from my pocket and ring home. Mum and Dad should both be home, so then they can both come. It rings and then goes to answerphone almost immediately. I groan internally. I try Mum's phone next, as she's more likely to pick up than Dad, but this time it goes straight to the 'Line Busy' screen. She must be trying to ring me back. I hang up, and my phone starts ringing. I was right.   
"Hi Mum. I'm at the stadium and there is a man who has an offer to make, but he wants to make it with you two here as well. Can you come?"   
"We'll have to bring Luke as well, but that's fine. We'll be there in five minutes. Love you, see you soon. Bye"  
"Bye." I go back to Mr Burns, and tell him "They'll be here in about five minutes. They have to bring my little brother as well, though."  
"That's fine. We can wait." We sit in the most awkward silence ever, since I have nothing to do. I feel like it would be too anti-social to get my phone or book out of my bag, but I am way too shy to strike up conversation with someone who I've only just met. I'm really bad at meeting new people. After what seems like years, Mum and Dad arrive, and the formal introductions begin.  
"Hello. I'm Mr Burns. And you are?"  
"I'm Louise and this is Antony. We're Georgia's parents. This is Luke, her brother. We were told you want to talk to us." Here it comes. As soon as they realise I did a gig, they're going to be all like 'why didn't you tell us?' etc. 

"Yes, I do. I couldn't help but notice that your daughter has the most amazing singing voice and musical skill when she performed at half time. I would like to offer a record deal for her original songs on behalf of Paradise Recording Studios." I look at my parents, a smile of excitement etched on my face but they turn to me in surprise. I was right.

"You never told us you were doing a gig. We would have come along." That was what I was afraid of. I knew that if they'd come, they would have been yelling my name really loudly and singing along to all of the ones they knew. They didn't even know I'd written any songs until Mr Burns told them a minute ago.

"I knew you wanted to stay in and watch England's match against Belgium and didn't want to spoil your fun."

"But a record deal, Georgia. You could have told us what you were doing in the first place."

I look up at them. "Sorry." I hope that they won't ask me to play something now, but, as it turns out, they don't. Mr Burns is even quicker than them.

"Why don't you play one for us now, Georgia?If you play 'Shoulder to Cry On', I could video it to send to my boss."

"Sure." I say. 'Damn' I think as I unpack my guitar. I was hoping this wouldn't happen. Wait for the awkward questions afterwards. Oh well. I strum the opening chords and sit back on my chair.

"Please give me a shoulder

A shoulder to cry on

I need a shoulder

Oh a shoulder to cry on."   
My parents look at me in sympathy.   
"Is that based off real experience, Georgia?"

"No," I say way too quickly. They don't notice, which is good. "I know someone who went through some stuff at school, but I'm fine." I stop there, before I end up sounding too defensive and they start to get suspicious. Nothing major happened, but I never felt the need to tell my parents, and I'm hoping they remain in the dark for basically ever. I want to change the subject, but Mum is looking at me expectantly, so I elaborate my lie. "Vicky was bullied a little at the start of Year 7 for being slightly crazy and very enthusiastic." I make a mental note to tell Vicky what I've just said. It's probably not untrue, but I don't want Mum ringing Lizzie, Vicky's Mum and telling her everything. "Anyway, back to the subject at hand?" Finally my chance to change the subject. 

"Ah, yes." Mum and Dad look like they want to carry on the subject of bullying, but accept my wishes and go back to the question at hand. "What would the record deal involve?"


	3. The Agreement

"The record deal is an album release of all your original songs, and releases onto the radio if it sells well. It will also include many recording sessions and singing lessons, which we will do our best to schedule around school hours. What do you say?" In my head, I am screaming and partying and already celebrating, but Mum manages to calm me down slightly. 

"I think we need to have a family talk." I sigh. Mum and Dad are struggling to take everything in, given the fact that I didn't tell them. 

"That's fine." Mr Burns gets up and walks out of the room and mum turns to me. 

"What do you think Georgia?" Honestly, I'm really shocked as I don't think I'm anywhere near good enough to have a record deal, but Mum won't listen to me if I say that, so instead I just tell her

"I think it'll be great. As long as they fit it around school hours, I don't mind." In reality, I wouldn't mind if I had to skip school, but I know Mum and Dad won't agree with that, so I just put that in to try and convince them. 

"Well, in the end it's up to you. I think it's an amazing opportunity, and you can set the conditions of who we're allowed to tell." Thank goodness. I don't know what I'd do if they said no. My head starts celebrating again, and I only just catch what Dad says next. 

"I agree with your Mum. I think it'll be a great experience and ,as long as they fit it around school hours, I see no problem."

"Cool. Shall I go and get Mr Burns again, then?" I jump out of my seat excitedly and run to the door. 

"Mr Burns! We're ready." I hold the door open as he walks into the room and then sit back down in my seat. Mum is the one who tells him our agreement.

"We've decided that, as long as everything's fitted around school hours and extra clubs then we accept." Mr Burns looks really excited, which is the first time I've seen him show any emotion at all. 

"Great. I'm just going to phone the company. Give me a second." He gets up and walks to the corner of the room, dialling a number as he goes. 

"Hello? Jason Burns here. I sent you a video of Georgia Westbury playing her original song 'Shoulder to Cry On.'" I tune out, and start tihnking, which is never a good sign. I can't believe I'm sat here waiting for someone to confirm my record deal with their boss. I never thought this would ahppen. Singing has always just been something I do for fun. I was planning on doing a degree in Mechanical Engineering. 'No', I think. 'Don't get ahead of yourself. This might lead nowhere, so don't just ditch education'. Stupid voice in my head. Always the voice of reason. I will continue with the engineering path though, because I find Physics and Tech really interesting, and think that would be a really cool career path. I start humming a song, but I hear Mr Burns getting ready to hang up. 

"Great. I'll tell them. See you soon, bye." He hangs up and turns back to us. "They would like to see you tomorrow at 11am. They will tell you then all of the details now that you have agreed. That will be all from me. I may see you tomorrow. Goodbye." He walks out the door, obviously ready to report every detail back to his company, Paradise Recording. 

"Well." I turn and look at Mum, surprised at her tone. "That was interesting. And astonishing, given the fact you didn't even tell us you were writing songs." I look at her, avoiding eye contact completely.

"I'm sorry, I just wanted to keep it private until I was ready. Mark persuaded me to play them today." We carry on the conversation as we walk home.

"Don't worry, we're not annoyed at you, it just would have been nice if you'd told us. Now, we need to get Luke to bed for the minute, so you can go and do whatever you want." I decide to go up to my room and cast a youtube video to my TV, a video called Journey of Emily. It's about Em Lewis getting to her Emily album. 

I really like it, because it shows some of how she became a star in the first place, but I wish she would do an autobiography or even someone would do a biography about her. 

However, as the video is over two hours longs, I only watch about half an hour of it before turning my light off and going to sleep. If we're meeting someone at Paradise Recording Studios tomorrow, then I need to have a good night's sleep.


	4. The Meeting

I get up early the next morning, because I need to get ready for the meeting at 11. I need to look respectable, and I'm also going to take my guitar in case they want to hear an original song live. I can't stand still. I'm so excited. What if I get to meet someone like Em Lewis or Isla Morgan, who are both signed with Paradise Recording. 

I yank my hairbrush through my hair, which always looks like a bush when I get up in the morning, and simultaneously tie my laces with my other hand. 

Finally, by about 9 o'clock, I'm ready to go. Our train leaves at 9:21 and will get in to Waterloo at 10:51. The office for the meeting is only a two minute walk from the station, so we should have plenty of time. I wanted to get the 8:51 train, but Mum refused, insisting we'd be there in plenty of time. 

Our train is five minutes late, and Mum spends the whole time fretting that we'll be late for our meeting. I refrain from giving her an 'I told you so' look, just because it will stress her out. After the meeting, that will be the first thing I do. The train pulls in and I run on board, finding a window seat and plugging my headphones in. I have been listening to lots of musicals at the moment, especially Hamilton, which has an amazing soundtrack. 

We arrive in Waterloo with three minutes to spare. I discover Mum's new speed as we run the whole way, getting there in under a minute. I don't feel tired, even though I can't run to save my life. I just feel the adrenaline building up inside of me. This could be my big chance. If I make this, the whole world could know my name. If I make this, my dream comes true. 

"Georgia Westbury, Mr Burns is ready." I grab hold of Mum's hand and we walk composedly through the door being held open by the secretary, as if we haven't just run through London like mad rabbits. 

"Georgia. Welcome to my office. And you, Louise. This is my boss, Miss McIntyre. She would like to hear you play to confirm the deal before we get into the details." I knew my guitar would be needed. I get it out of the case as Mr Burns introduces us to Miss McIntyre. "This is Louise Westbury and her daughter, Georgia. I heard her play at the football match in Westbury yesterday, and had to invite her here. When you hear her, you'll agree." I look at my feet as Mr Burns turns to me. "Georgia, can you play Shoulder to Cry On?" I grab my guitar out the case and start playing it. This is worse than playing in front of 1000 people I've never met, even though I only know one of the people here properly. Mr Burns looks at Miss McIntyre with the look that's half smirk half 'I told you so' that shows she is really impressed. 

Finished, she looks at me in surprise. "You wrote this?" I return the look. 

"Yeah. Why?" I say shyly, not rudely. I can feel my face heating up and know I probably look like a tomato. Great.

"It's really good. I agree wholeheartedly with Mr Burns. We would be delighted to offer a record deal." I squeal in ecstasy and look at my mum, smiling. I've done it. I know it's only the deal, but it's a start. "Now, we need to discuss the details." This'll be the boring bit. I just want to go home and tell my whole family and all of my friends. I end up contenting myself with asking to ring my dad and my brother. 

"I'd love to discuss the details, but can I quickly ring my Dad first, to tell him the amazing news?" Miss McIntyre nods her head in response, so I grab my phone and run outside of the door, dialling the number as I go. Dad couldn't come because he has got an important meeting at work this afternoon, and he couldn't risk being late for that. I wish he could though, because he and Mum have both been really supportive of my music and I'd love for him to be here in person. 

"Dad... Guess What? I GOT THE DEAL!" I think I hear a sigh of relief on the other end, but I may just be hallucinating in my excitement. 

"That's great, Princess. Ring me when you're on the train back and you can tell me everything."

"Yeah. Bye, Dad." I hang up and run back into the room. 

"I'm ready." I can feel the adrenaline coursing through me, and I feel really restless and impatient. I can't wait to hear the details of my record deal, and then we can rush home to tell everyone else. 

"Right. We've decided that the best time to record is probably weekends, although only weekends when you have a new song or a new idea for a song. We can do 11, like today. You need to be aware that you may have to miss some school if anything comes up with someone and they can't do the weekend, but we will do our absolute hardest to get weekends. The last thing is that your mum will need to sign this contract if you agree." She waves a piece of paper at Mum who, after looking at me for permission and getting it, signs it with a flourish and gives it back to Miss McIntyre. 

"Thank you soooo much!" I hug Miss McIntyre and shake Mr Burns' hand before rushing to get the train back. 

On the train, I turn to Mum, the adrenaline still coursing around my body and making me seem like a hyper nine-year old.

"Best. Day. Ever!"


	5. The Concert

"Dad! We're home." I run through the door shouting. I haven't lost any of the adrenaline just because we've been sat on the train for an hour and a half. Dad walks out of the kitchen in his jeans and t- shirt as I run at him, and he swings me round like he did when I was little. I'm surprised he can still do that, now that I'm 16. You'd think I'd be too heavy. 

"Come and tell me everything." We sit cuddled up on the sofa, the whole family, and between me and Mum, Dad and Luke get all of the details. We ring both sets of grandparents, and my Aunt, who is out of town at the moment. They're all really happy for me, and can't wait to hear all of the details when we next see them. We sit there for

Finally, Mum takes charge and stands up. "Right, Luke. You need to get ready for rugby now." Luke plays rugby for the town Under 11s team, but I have no idea how good they are because I hate rugby, so almost never go and watch them. However, Dad jumps in and says,

"Hang on. I have a surprise for all of you to celebrate Georgia's success." He fishes in his pocket and brings out four pieces of paper to give to me. I take them slowly and read them over, my confused look slowly changing to a grin as I realise what he's just given me. My brain is now having a double party, and I think it might explode. 

"Thank You! Thank You so much." I shove them into Mum's face, probably slightly too aggressively, and she glances at Dad in surprise. He's going to have some explaining to do later, but I don't care.

He's got me tickets to Em Lewis's Emily Tour!!!! I have to wait four months, but still. 

The 4th February seems to take years to arrive, when its actually only 4 months. I have listened to her new CD over and over again, trying my utmost to learn the words in time for the show at the O2. We arrive at about 5:45, just an hour before the opening act starts. We spend the next hour and ten minutes stood in the queue for the merchandise to get me a t-shirt and the official tour book.

Finally through the queue, I throw the t-shirt over my head as we watch the last ten minutes of the opening act. They're really good, but I'm here for the main performance.

She starts with Babe, Let's Party, the first track on the CD, and it goes down really well. It's one of her only songs about a positive relationship.

She carries on, following Babe, Let's Party with I Heard He Loves You, Crazy Promises and Light Secrets. She then plays Pretty Money, Search For My Heart and A Picture of Hearts.

She has a quick costume change, and comes back on to do a few more songs from Emily. My favourite part of the evening is the end, when Em plays Brave Heart, my favourite from Emily, and then does Pretty Feeling and Music of The Night, acoustic version. She finishes off the evening with her first hit from the album, I Hope I'll Love You Forever.

Throughout the evening, I sing my heart out, making sure that I am loud, but not so loud that my voice becomes a scream and swims in and out of key like a fish. I have a big poster I made, but I make sure not to hold it too high for fear of the people behind me not being able to see. IIt has Em Lewis written across the top in red writing and a photo of her in the middle. I look around the stadium at the other posters, and see that one row have five light up letters to spell out Emily, and are holding them as high as they can get them. 

I'm engrossed in the concert, but I suddenly hear a noise to my right and look round, because I am stood on the end of row N, by the aisle.

"Hello, I have been asked to give you these." I see an official holding out pieces of paper, and my first thought is 'What have we done wrong?" Why would an official give us pieces of paper? Then Dad gives them to me, and I scream in surprise.

We have passes to the Em Club after the show! I've heard about this. She holds a little gathering of people who have shown that they're massive fans where they get to meet her and have nibbles and stuff. I can't believe I get to meet her!!!

Still watching the performance, I scream involuntarily and I swear I see Em smile on stage. She obviously knows what it sounds like when someone get an invite, and so she must know how many people come.


	6. The Em Club

In 'Section 34', the Em Club room, we gather with the other four families who have also got invites. I can't keep still. I'm finally going to meet Em Lewis!!! We all talk to each other about what we did to get the passes. 

The first person has beautiful coffee-coloured skin, which her dark brown hair complements perfectly. She must be in her late teens, and if she's not a model, I will be very surprised. She has a small scar under her left eye, but it just makes her look more beautiful, because she's not perfect. Her long hair is plaited down her back, and reaches her waist even in a plait. She wears long dungarees, with an Em Lewis hoody over the top, and has a copy of the tour book in her hand. "I had a hoody, poster and a light up Em Lewis sign." 

The second person has short ginger hair in a messy style, like Harry Potter. He is wearing white shorts with a green stripe down each leg (why he would wear shorts in February, I have no idea) and a minecraft t-shirt. He's probably too cool to buy an Em Lewis t-shirt, but he's a massive fan, based on his statement. "Our family each had a blue light up letter to spell out Em." They must be the row I saw during the concert. 

Now it's my go. "We had a poster and the courtesy to hold it low so that the people behind us could still see." Our reason sounds really lame compared to everyone else's, but we were chosen to come so we must be here for a reason.

Suddenly, an official walks in. "May I introduce Em Lewis." I turn to look as my idol walks through the door and internally scream. I can't believe we're finally meeting Em Lewis!! The butterflies in my stomach seem ready to burst as she turns to smile at me, and I have to pinch myself to remind myself this isn't a dream... and to get my circulation back. She's changed since the show, although I'm not sure why I thought she wouldn't, and she's taken her hair down as well. She stops by each family, asking about them and, in the case of people my age, what they want to be. When she gets to us, I know that somehow my family will find an opportunity to tell her about my deal.

While I am lost in thought, she has made her way round to us and is asking my parents and Luke their names. She turns to me.

"And you are..."

"I'm Georgia." I want to say more, but I can't. My hero is stood about a foot in front of me. Dad takes the opportunity and butts in.

"Georgia has recently been offered a record deal with Paradise Recording Studios. Her first recording session is on Saturday." She looks at me in surprise. I bet she doesn't get this everyday, but I just want to sink into the ground. I hate being the centre of attention.

"Really? Can I hear one of your songs?" I don't have my guitar, but she seems to realise my dilemma and brings out the one she used on stage about half an hour ago. Everyone is busy talking and laughing, while eating the pizza, but as soon as I play the first chord of 'Shoulder to Cry On' the room goes silent. Great.

'Oh well,' I think, at least it isn't as many people as at the Ray Mac.

I start to sing, and soon I forget that Em Lewis is watching. I only feel the emotion flowing through my veins, and the feel of her guitar.

When I finish, I see that her face is a mask of surprise. Everyone else is staring, and then someone starts to clap and everyone follows suit. I can't believe I've just played the guitar belonging to my idol. Em is the first to speak.

"Wow." She looks at me astonished, but all she can say is, "You can keep the guitar, after that. Can you do another one, maybe from a recent movie?" In my head, I am having a party because she's just given me her guitar but on the outside I stay composed, and tell her that I can sing The Place Where Lost Things Go from Mary Poppins Returns acappella, but that I can't yet play it on guitar or piano. "Go on then."

"So when you need her touch and loving gaze, Gone but not forgotten is the perfect phrase. Smiling from a star that she makes glow, Trust she's always there, Watching as you grow, Find her in the place Where the lost things go."

When I finish, she finally moves on back to her Mum, but I can't shake the feeling that she will be back, and probably before the end as well.

The girl with long hair from earlier comes and sits with me. "That was really good. I'm Tara, by the way. What's your name?" She seems really nice, but I'm always really shy when meeting new people. 

"I'm Georgia." I say timidly. She smiles at me kindly. 

"Well, like I said, that was amazing. Where did you learn to sing like that?" I blush at her compliment. 

"Thank you, but I've never actually been taught how to sing. Would you like to see the guitar?" I ask, changing the subject while offering her my new guitar to look at. She takes it off my hands and inspects it in awe. 

"That's so cool! I can't believe you now own one of Em Lewis's own guitars." I smile. This is someone I can relate to.

"I know, right. Not wanting to sound creepy, where do you live?" She laughs. 

"That's not creepy. I live in Warminster."

"I only live down the road from there, in Westbury." I say excitedly. As people start to leave, I grab out my phone. 

"What's your number? Maybe we could meet up sometime." 

"That would be cool. My number is 07749 852410." As her parents get up to leave, she goes to follow them once we've exchanged numbers. 

"Thanks." She says. "Hopefully see you soon."


	7. First Lesson

"The main thing you need to focus on is your confidence, but you could also do with working on your breath support." I sit in front of my singing teacher as she tells me what to do better, reliving Saturday night in my head. I was right. Em did come back and talk to me after everyone had left. She told me that, unlike most people who dm-ed her on Instagram, she would reply to mine, as long as she knew my username. I told her my music account as well as my normal account, and told her that I might tell her my private account in the future. She then warned me that she couldn't follow me back, because it would draw too much attention to me. I thanked her and hugged her, and then we sadly had to leave. We didn't get back home until about 3 in the morning.   
I finally pay attention to Mrs Meadows, who is now telling me that singing with confidence will improve my voice dramatically. I can work on my breath support, but surely there are more things to improve on than just that and my confidence? In my opinion, that will just increase over time as more people give me feedback, positive and critical. The problem with improving my confidence is that I suffer from Glossophobia, along with 75% of people in the world, so I hate speaking or singing in front of people. I only did it at the Raymac because Mark managed to persuade me.

"Now," She turns to me, jolting me back to my lesson. "I would like to hear the one from Mary Poppins, as you don't know how to accompany yourself, so I can hear you sing acappella." Great. Oh well, I really like The Place Where Lost Things Go, so it's not too bad.

"Do you ever lie awake at night? Just between the dark and the morning light. Searching for the things you used to know. Looking for the place where the lost things go." She makes notes throughout the whole song and then turns back to me when I finish.

"Yes," she says, confirming her previous advice. "Just project your voice more with more support. You may go now." I can't believe that's my hour over already. It barely feels like half an hour. However, I grab my hoody and bag and walk out the door to meet mum, throwing my hoody over my head. I have to go to school tomorrow, as Mrs Meadows wasn't free on Saturday so I've done an hour today, Sunday.

I walk through the door, really excited. I haven't actually told Vicky or Prisha about my deal, as I wanted to see what it was like first. They don't even know I did a gig at the Ray Mac. I walk quickly to the form room, and burst in, running straight to our seats at the back.

"Vicky, Prisha, come outside!" I can't wait and want to let them know as soon as possible. They will be sworn to secrecy, as I only want to tell people I trust. They walk really really slowly, and take years to get to the lockers. Well, they don't but it feels like it.

When they finally arrive, I look around to check there's nobody listening and turn back to them.

"I got a record deal at Paradise Recording Studios!" They look at me in disbelief and I internally scream. Why don't they believe me? Vicky is the first to speak.

"Of course you did, Georgia. And I'm president of the United States." OK. I guess it is a bit unbelievable.

"I did, I promise. Mark convinced me to do a gig at the match at the Ray Mac last Saturday and there was someone there. We went up to London and arranged it all. We also went to see Em Lewis at Wembley on Saturday as a treat because I got the deal. I have her guitar to prove it. You can come round tonight, if you want, and see it for yourself. Also, I made a new friend." The last bit sounds really lame, but they're not paying any attention to that. Their mouths fall open as they realise I'm not lying, and I have to hold in a laugh. Before I can say anything else, however, they run at me and hug me. 

"Well done, Georgia. That's amazing. You have to tell us everything."


	8. Persuasion

I tell Vicky and Prisha everything, starting with Mark's persuasion that started the whole thing off.

*Flashback*

I finished singing Shoulder to Cry On and turned to get off he piano. I was sat in the music room at school, singing and there was no one listening. Suddenly, a familiar face appeared at the window in the door.

"Mark?! What are you doing here?" He smiled and opened the door.

"I was having a meeting with Mrs Stewart and I was just leaving when I heard someone singing. I thought I recognised the voice. You should come and sing at the Ray Mac on Saturday. There's a match against Weymouth." I looked at him in shock.

"I couldn't possibly! You know how much I hate public speaking, let alone public singing."

"Come on Georgia. You can just do it over the mic, you don't have to stand with everyone watching you." Please no. Anything but singing in front of a thousand people.

"But everyone will still know who it is, because you'll have to introduce me. It won't make a difference that they can't see me." He thought for a moment, trying to find something else to persuade me.

"We can introduce you as Amara Aylesbury, and you can sing in the dug- out, if that helps." That sounds OK, I guessed, but I still had my doubts.

"What if the manager's assistants don't leave the dug- out?" He looked at me.

"I'll make sure they do." I groaned internally.

"Fine." I sighed, knowing he wouldn't stop if I said no.

"Yes! Thanks, Georgia." He wandered off, leaving me wondering what on earth I'd let myself into.

*End of Flashback*

Vicky and Prisha stare at me.   
"He actually managed to persuade you!? Even I can't do that, and I have the persuasion skills of a goldfish." Sometimes I wonder if Vicky's weirdness will ever rub off on me. I sincerely hope not.   
She looks confused for a minute and then says "I'm not sure if that was a compliment or not..." I continue telling them my story, skipping to the gig at the match.   
When I get to the end of my story, right up to my first lesson yesterday, they gape at me in astonishment.   
"And you didn't think to tell us any of this?" Prisha demands, obviously speaking for both of them. I kind of feel bad now, but I just wanted to experience it first.  
"I just wanted to see what it was like first. I didn't want to tell you and then it turn out to be a total waste of time."  
"I don't see how it could be a waste of time, but I get where you're coming from." I'm glad they've come round to my point of view.   
"You'll have to tell us all about your first recording session on Friday. What are you recording?" I realise only then that I haven't told them about my original songs yet.   
" I wrote a song called Shoulder to Cry On. Would you like to hear it? "   
"Yess!!" They squeal in unison. We rush to the music block with five minutes until registration. We steal M9 for three minutes, as it's the only room with guitars. I sit down on the piano stool, grab a guitar and strum the opening in double quick time, knowing the bell will ring at any minute. I finish in about two minutes, my new record, and they spend the next double lesson of English complimenting me and my songwriting and singing skills. I try to keep my head down, but Vicky was making that almost impossible with her constant blabbering, telling everyone she knew about my record deal. So much for not being famous yet.

We head off to our first lesson (after registration) which just happens to be music. I bet it won't be long before Mrs Thorley finds out about my record deal. Vicky and Prisha had better not tell her. Today, we're doing African music. That's good, as there's not many openings for anyone to tell her about my record deal. We split into three big groups to practice our own version of Wimoweh, and we will perform it later in the lesson. I am playing the piano with Anne and singing, Beau and Ivy are playing the drums, Vicky is singing, Ella is playing Saxophone and Bella is singing with Anne. Maisy and Rachel are playing percussion. We are performing today, so we just run through it a couple of times.

As we're practising, Isabella Steele, the most aggressive girl in the school, comes in under the guise of listening to our piece.

"How were your books over the weekend, Westbury? Do they have interesting lives?" I so want to tell her about my record deal, but I know that she'll just find a way to turn that bad, so I ignore her. Surprisingly, it's Mrs Thorley who saves me when she puts her head around the door.

"Time to come in, girls." Performance time. It feels good to just have something that small to worry about and just to have fun with friends, instead of having to be all grown-up and mature for the record deal. Prisha's group go first and get three house-points, and then it's our go. They did theirs a capella, whereas we have lots of different instruments. We get two house-points for our performance, and the last group also get two. That's an extra 63 for our form count!


	9. Normal

I make my way to our last lesson of the day, German, with Nysa, who is in my PSD lesson. It's nearly been a week since I told Vicky and Prisha and not much has really happened since. We're complaining about all of the homework we get from our German teacher, and I can't help liking the feeling of just being normal. I know that if my name becomes known among more people, that feeling will become harder and harder to find, so I want to make the most of it whilst I can, knowing that my time knowing that feeling well is limited. Arriving in our German lesson, we.sit down and get on with the work. We are in our second year of German and are currently learning how to form the past tense, which is very boring. I prefer German over French, which is why I chose German for my GCSE options two years ago. I also chose Music and Tech. We take our exams at the end of this year, so my main focus will be on them rather than my record deal. I'm not looking forward to that two month period, or the revision leading up to it, because I think it will be really stressful with exams and my record deal. 

"Georgia, what did I just say?" Great time to be picked one by the teacher. What are we learning? The imperfect past tense with modal verbs and because, I think. 

"To use past tense modal verbs with weil, you have to replace the habe gemusst with musste." Mrs Dawson's annoyed look tells me that my guess was right. She glares at me and carries on with the lesson. Edie, the girl I sit next to, turns and smiles at me when we start doing our written work. 

"Good save, Georgia." I smile back at her and we carry on with our work.

Isabella is sat in front of me and sniggers to the girl next to her, whispering "She was just lucky." She is the most popular girl in the year, although I'm not sure why. She bullies lots of the younger years, and loads of our year as well. I think she just wants the attention, but who knows why she does it. 

When we have all packed up and everyone is leaving the lesson to go home, my teacher calls me over. 

"Listen, Georgia. I know that was just a lucky guess when you weren't paying attention. You were daydreaming a lot yesterday as well. If there's anything going on, you can tell me or pastoral, you now that, don't you?" If only she knew what was going on. I wouldn't change anything that's happened in the past month, but it's becoming harder to concentrate because I'm thinking too much about the record deal. Part of me wants to tell her, and have a teacher know, but I know she will never look at me the same way again if I do. In the end I decide to tell her, because, although I'll probably regret it, I think I might explode if I have to keep the secret around everyone at school except Vicky and Prisha. 

"I've got a record deal with Paradise Recording Studios." Her face registers shock, then confusion then a mix of sympathy, annoyance and something else I can't quite put my finger on. She definitely wasn't expecting that. 

"That's impressive, but it shouldn't be distracting you from your schoolwork. If it continues I will have to talk to Mrs Goodall about possibly ringing them up and asking them to only run whatever they're doing with you in school holidays." I certainly regret telling her now. I don't even reply. I turn and run out of the classroom, where Vicky is waiting for me. Prisha had to go and catch her bus, but Vicky walks home, so she doesn't have to hurry. 

We walk into town and I tell her everything that happened and ask her advice. I can't carry on like this, as my predicted GCSE grades are really high, and I can't fail my teachers. She tells me that she understands but, however much I love Vicky and however much she's been there for me over the past five years, I don't think she can really understand unless she goes through it herself. Her main advice is to try and think as much as I want about the record deal but put it out of mind at the start of the day and don't mention it or think about it throughout the entire day. That's easier said than done, but I have to try for both my grades and my music. 

The next morning, I meet Aine in the library before tutor time. She's been my best friend since reception, and we now go to the same secondary school as well, and have stayed friends. She's the last friend left I want to tell about my record deal, as I don't really want it common information. The less people who can put my name to my face and know it's me with the record deal, the less annoying fame will be, if it comes. 

When I walk through the door to the library, she's already waiting there. 

"Hi, Aine!" I say excitedly. "I have some amazing news." She looks at me expectantly. "I've got a record deal!!" Just like Mrs Dawson, her face registers shock, but she doesn't look annoyed. 

"Georgia, that's amazing. Tell me everything." Just like I did with Vicky and Prisha on Monday, I recount everything, starting with when Mark saw me in the music room and persuaded me. She makes a comment similar to Vicky's about him managing to persuade me, but doesn't compare her persuasion skills. I finish with my first singing lesson last Sunday and we say goodbye, heading off to our different lessons. 

"Meet you here again at break?"


	10. Recording

By the time it gets to the weekend, I'm knackered. All the teachers keep going on about is study leave (which starts in the middle of May) and exams, which are just after. All I want to do is sleep, but I have my first recording session in London this morning, and I want to see what it's like. I also don't want to let Paradise down. I also need to revise after recording. I sit up groggily in bed, my hair looking like a bird's nest gone wrong. I brush it, get dressed and wander downstairs for breakfast, before grabbing my phone, yelling "Bye Mum, By Dad!" and walking out the door to the train station. Mum and Dad would come with me, but Luke has a football cup final this morning, so they both want to go. 

I get to the train station just in time to catch the next train to London Waterloo. On the train, I text Vicky, Prisha and Aine to tell them that I'm on my way. They all reply with encouraging messages, and my confidence grows slightly, knowing my best friends are backing me every step of the way. 

When my train arrives at Waterloo, I send a quick dm to Mum and Dad to let them know I got here safely, otherwise they'll just keep ringing me until I answer. 

I journey across London on the tube until I get to the address we were given. I look up at the building and take a step back in surprise. It's huge! It looks like a mansion. 

I walk up the front steps in awe, admiring the sheer bright whiteness of everything, marvelling at how they managed to keep everything quite so white. I knock gingerly on the front door with the knocker, as I don't want to make a really loud noise, and wait for an answer. I look up whilst I wait and notice that the building must be at least 5 stories. My singing teacher told me I'll soon find my way round, when we had our first lesson at the smaller studio nearer home. 

I'm jolted out of my thoughts by Mr Burns answering the door. 

"Georgia." He smiles warmly. "You're here. Come in, come in." I look around the entrance hall, mesmerised. He notices my gaze and laughs. "I can see you're impressed. I was as well, the first time I came. Now, come one. The studio's this way." I follow him down a maze of corridors, sure I'll never be able to find my way round. 

Eventually, we come to a door with a gold plate with the words 'Recording Studio' engraved on it. Mr Burns turns to me again. "This is it. This is where you go in. My door's further down, but I'll still be able to show you how to do everything. He pushes open the door and invites me to walk through, before making his way further down the corridor to the next door. 

Inside the studio, it's incredible. There's such a big selection of guitars and I notice the mixing desk in the recorder's part of the place is huge. This is where Mr Burns is stood. We're separated by a sheet of glass, so that no other sounds are caught by the mic, and I slowly walk over to the stool, completely in awe. 

Mr Burns sits in the chair nearest the separator. "We'll start with something short and simple, then we'll record your own song and see if we can get a good enough recording to release. We might not today, however, as today is only your first session." We decide to start with Honey Honey from Mamma Mia, as that is short and not too hard to sing. We used that to warm my voice up, then move on to Shoulder To Cry On. 

We end up taking about 20 recordings before recording one take that Mr Burns thinks is really good. He listens to it and asks if we can put the guitar and piano to that one. He gives me the offer of using one of the many guitars available in the room, but I decide to stick with the one Em gave me. I play the guitar chords, which he puts with the voice, then move over to the piano and plug the mic in. "Ready?" I ask him. He nods and gives me a thumbs up, so I start playing. 

Once I've finished, I wait while he mixes them together properly and gets the levels right, then he invites me to put my headphones back on and listen to it. It sounds really cool with all of the instruments put together. I've never heard it like that before, as I can only play one instrument at a time. It finishes and he waits expectantly for my reaction. As he won't be able to hear me, I smile broadly and give a double thumbs up. He nods and fiddles around on his computer before gesturing to the door. 

When we meet back in the corridor, he fills me in on everything. 

"I've emailed it to my computer, so we can go back to my office and release it, if you're happy. We don't need parental consent, as they consented to the whole deal in the first place." We head back to his office and my excitement builds as I anticipate the release of my first song. It feels a bit too early in the deal, but if Mr Burns thinks it's OK then I'm fine with releasing it. 

In his office, he fills in some quick paperwork, and then my single has been released. I don't know what the reaction will be, but I can't wait to see.


	11. Reaction

Back at home, the next day, a thought hits me. Mr Burns told us after the football match that the deal would be an album release, then it would be played on radios if it was popular, but we've released just one song. I guess it's just building up to the album release, releasing the title song first. 

Vicky has invited me, Aine and Prisha round to her house, so I close my revision and grab my bag, before walking out the door. 

We sit on Vicky's bed, each going through our Instagram and showing each other funny photos. Vicky jumps up and puts the radio on and grabs her hairbrush, having seen a post that 'inspired' her. The song that comes on is Rolling in the Deep, by Adele, and she jumps up onto the bed and starts singing. The song finishes and she looks down at us, complaining. "I didn't know all the words to that one." She moans. The radio presenter introduces another song that I don't catch the name of. However, I recognise it as soon as I hear it. Vicky brightens visibly. "But I know the words to this one." I put my head in my hands and groan "Vicky, no. Please." She shoots me a look and starts to sing awfully on purpose. 

After what feels like a millenia, the song finally finishes. I listen to what the radio presenter says and, when he announces that the song has broken records for the most listens in 24 hours to a song written by someone who's under 18. I faint, probably too dramatically, and the last thing I hear before I completely black out is Vicky gasping and calling her mother, Lizzy. 

The next day is the worst day ever. All the teachers make a huge fuss of me and I keep getting people coming up to me asking me loads of questions. 

Eventually I snap. I drag Vicky, Aine and Prisha up to pastoral. They sit on the bean bags while I knock on Miss Blackburn's door and go in. She looks up to see who it is and immediately realises the problem. I can tell. However, being the amazing person she is, she doesn't say anything and just asks me what's wrong. 

"Everybody keeps pestering me and making a fuss of me all the time and I just need a break. When I agreed to the deal, I didn't quite realise what I was signing up for." I say. Realising what that sounds like, I quickly add, "But I wouldn't change it for the world." She nods slightly to acknowledge what I've said, and checks something on her computer before turning back to me. 

"I'm afraid I don't have a complete solution, but I can give you a time- out card to get you out of lessons so you can come up here whenever it gets a bit overwhelming." She hands me a small piece of laminated paper and I thank her and go and find Vicky, Aine and Prisha. I don't know if I'll actually use my card, as I don't really want to draw attention to myself in lessons: I have too much of that already. I voice my opinions to my friends, and they all start saying that I should just do it. Prisha suggests that I should use it in German when Mrs Dawson keeps picking on me. 

Suddenly, Vicky gets on ominous gleam in her eye. I am the first to notice and quietly point it out to Aine and Prisha. "Whatever you're planning, Vicky, no." I say with a tone of finality. She smiles suspiciously and just says "I'm not planning anything." Obviously we all believe her *rolls eyes* 

In German at the end of the day, our predictions were right. Mrs Dawson continually picks on me and tells me off loads when I get an answer wrong. When we are set to the work, a written piece, she immediately walks over to where I'm sat and reads what I'm writing over my shoulder, all the while telling me that I need to write faster if I want to get a full piece written in the exam. 

When she finally walks away, I nod at Vicky through the window, who immediately pushes open the door, jumps up on the table and starts singing, awfully on purpose, 'Somebody to Love'. As nobody likes the teacher, everyone ends up joining in, and someone even hands Vicky a hairbrush. Mrs Dawson tries desperately to calm everyone down, but to no avail. In the midst of all the chaos, nobody notices when I sneak up to the teacher, flash her my time out card and walk out of the classroom. Through the window, I notice some heads turn as they hear the door close, but by then it's too late. I make my way to pastoral, glad to finally be away from all of the attention. 

Arriving, I collapse onto one of the beanbags and take my laptop out of my bag ready to do some revision. Miss Blackburn looks out of her door to see who's arrived, smiles at me and retreats back into her office. 

Finally. Peace to revise without so much attention on me or somebody constantly nagging me. I download lots of past papers to use to revise and check with Miss Blackburn that it's OK to use the printer in pastoral. I'm so engrossed in my revision, that I don't notice Vicky walk in the door. 

"Mrs Dawson said I could come and check on you. She's given me detention for a week." However weird Vicky is, she's an amazing friend who'd do anything for me and is always there. She's like my human diary. I smile slightly at her statement. 

"What happened after I left?" 

"She finally managed to calm everyone down and pulled me off the table, telling me about my detention. I gave whoever back their hairbrush and we kind of just pretended to carry on working. Nobody did anything though." I laugh at the thought of Mrs Dawson thinking everyone was quietly getting on with things, when in reality they were enjoying the break from work. 

"Thanks, Vicky. You're amazing."


	12. Sanctuary

I can't believe Vicky did it. She only did it because she had a free period, but still. To stand outside the door and wait for my signal, then to burst into a classroom where she doesn't have a lesson and start singing is incredible. 

After school, we're sat at home, Vicky on one end of the bed, me on the other, both writing. We're both obsessed with Star Wars at the moment, so we're both writing Star Wars fanfics. We're discussing our OCs and showing each other cartoons of them, when Vicky suddenly looks at me, curious. 

"So, how's fame going, Georgia?" I groan. 

"You had to bring that up? Mrs Dawson hates me and threatened to report me to Mrs Goodall to get her to talk to the record company, and I can't get a moment's peace anywhere anymore." I'm grateful that she doesn't try and take the sympathy route to 'comfort me', or tell me that she understands. She just says "I won't tell you I understand, because I don't, but just know that you can use here as a safe-house when you want to." I smile gratefully. 

"Thanks, Vicky." I seem to be saying that a lot lately, but she's been the most amazing friend as my dream slowly becomes reality.  
We turn out focus back to Star Wars, although I decide to do my homework before continuing my writing. We got given so much by Mrs Dawson yesterday. She asked us to teach ourselves something, which I think is really stupid. Isn't that what she's paid to do? She also asked us to do some practice questions, which takes ages

"How much homework do you have?" I ask Vicky when I finally finish. She looks at me sympathetically and holds out her hand to proof read it. She's really good at German, which I'm taking and I'm really good at French, which she learns outside of school, so this is a common practice. She starts reading and stops suddenly, looking up. 

"Georgia..." I look up from my next piece of homework. "You've written it all in French." I groan 

"You've got to be joking me." I say, grabbing my book back off of her. But no, it's there in black and white. In French!! I tear the page out dejectedly and start over again, but Vicky gently takes it off me.

"You can't go on like this Georgia, you're exhausted. Stop, and ask Mrs Dawson if she'll give you more time."

"I can't, Vicky. You know what she said. If my deal affects my school work, she's going to go and talk to Mrs Goodall." 

"Then you go and talk to Mrs Goodall first." She says reasonably. "You know she's always going on about how academia isn't everything. It's time for her to prove she believes that." 

I meet Vicky at the front gate early the next morning so that we can go and see the head before school starts. Vicky comes along for moral support, and I couldn't be more grateful. 

I knock nervously on the door of Mrs Goodall's office, starting to regret my decision to do this. I turn to Vicky, who gives me a good luck smile and gestures to the door, which is just being opened. 

"Ah, Georgia. I've heard about you. Come in." Vicky gives me a small wave and thumbs up, before the door shuts between the headteacher and my only escape route. 

"Now," Mrs Goodall starts. "Miss Blackburn told me that you went to see her, and that she gave you a time- out card. What can I do for you?" I acknowledge her question, but look at my feet as I answer. 

"I was doing my German homework at Vicky's house and asked her to proof read it. I'd written it in French. Vicky told me I needed to ask Mrs Dawson for more time, but she told me if my deal affected my school work, she'd personally see to it that you cancelled it. I know you always say that academia isn't everything, but she was really annoyed. Can you help at all?" I feel really self-conscious sharing my problems with what feels like all of my teachers, but Vicky pretty much dragged me here this morning and probably would've resorted to bribery or blackmail if I hadn't come. 

"You're right, of course, that I believe you should do whatever you want to do, but that doesn't mean that school work doesn't matter. Maybe you can compromise with Mrs Dawson and come to some agreement so that your deal carries on, but doesn't take a huge toll on your studies?"

"I don't think she'll listen. She's already overloaded us with homework, which nobody can manage. We've all been complaining to each other, but with my weekends completely taken up, it's even harder to keep on top of things." 

"I'll talk to Mrs Dawson, and see if she can agree to some kind of compromise, and I'll also request that she cuts down the amount of homework, although you should expect more as this is your GCSE year. I can also suggest that your compromise includes extending you're deadline by a lesson or two, but I can't make any promises. You'll have to talk to her yourself, I'm afraid." I nod, and get up to leave. 

"Thank you." I say gratefully, walking out the door. Vicky is waiting, and I explain everything, before we make our way to form time.


	13. Compromise

I raise my fist to knock on the door and jump as I hear my name. 

"Georgia. Who were you looking for?" Mrs Dawson walks up to the door of her office, and finally turns to look at me. 

"I- I was hoping to talk to you, actually." I stutter nervously, hating talking to teachers anyway. Add that to the fact that this is going to be the most awkward conversation ever, and I am a nervous wreck. 

"I was wondering if we could come to some kind of compromise over the homework situation." I say, moving forward as she invites me to sit down in her office. "I'm in London at least every other weekend recording, so all of my homework on top of that and my extra-curricular activities is making me exhausted. I wrote the piece of writing you asked for in French last night, and didn't even notice until my friend told me." She gives me a slightly disapproving look, as if she still holds to her first opinions about my record deal, but doesn't say no. 

"Ah, yes. I thought you would come and ask. Mrs Goodall came and spoke to me yesterday about it. She also requested that I stop giving you so much homework. I'm guessing that was your doing as well?" She pauses, but not long enough for me to reply or even apologise. "With regard to the compromise, I can give you one extra lesson, but no more, because we can't have people think I'm favouring you just because you're famous. To everybody else, your homework is due in at the same time as theirs." I smile gratefully at her and go to leave, but she's not quite finished. "I may seem annoyed about your record deal, but I'm not a music teacher and I don't want it to affect your class work. You're dismissed." I walk out the door, shaken by what's just happened. Did she really just say that she wasn't annoyed about my record deal? But she hates me! Why would she say that?

"You will never believe this." I tell the entire story to Vicky, Aine and Prisha, who is sipping her Starbucks that she probably bought in Tesco this morning. I finish off by telling them about the compromise we came to. "And then, she gave me an extra lesson for every piece of homework, as long as I don't tell anyone in the class." Vicky laughs, as astonished as me by the turn of events. 

"Mrs Goodall must have really gone at her for her to speak to you so normally and have a proper civilised conversation with you. You always say that the only things she ever says to you is asking you a question or telling you off for something or other." I nod my head in agreement but keep quiet, slightly subdued by the turn of events. I always hate Mrs Dawson but now I'm struggling to think of a reason for that hatred.

"I can see how she might have done." I reply absentmindedly. "She really likes me for some reason." Vicky rolls her eyes, and they all laugh. 

"I don't suppose it would have anything to do with the fact that you have a record deal and are famous, and that her school could go the same way if she's nice to you. If she's horrible, the school could become infamous, which is the worst thing that could happen." I laugh as well, happy to be joking around with my friends and talking about teachers. 

"Maybe I should mention this place to Mr Burns. He'd love to come and see where I go to school." I suggest, wanting to see their reaction. I'm not sure if I'm joking or not, but their reactions will decide that for me. 

"Mrs Goodall would probably faint." Aine says, joining in the conversation for the first time. "That would be all over the radio, probably mentioned every time they play your song, which is played loads, by the way." We smirk at each other and burst into laughter once more, before Detention Dame comes around and kicks us out of the library because Prisha was drinking in the library. 

We call her that because she will give anyone detention for anything, no matter how small, and thinks she's as good as any dame. In reality, she's horrible, and like today, will kick an entire group out if one person breaks the smallest of rules. 

Prisha has to stay behind for a bit so that they can organise her detention, and comes out looking very dejected. 

"She's given me a lunchtime detention tomorrow, so I can't come to choir, and she hasn't followed the rules of giving me time to eat my lunch." I put my arms round her to comfort her, and we walk to our next lesson, me telling her that we can tell the music teacher and it will be fine.


	14. Controversy

I sit at lunch with Prisha, Aine and Vicky, all of us staring at our phones. We're all on Instagram, scrolling through our feed, when Prisha gasps. 

"Look at you followers, Georgia! got five point one kay now." My head spins round to face her as we all stop and stare. 

"No way. That's amazing.!" Vicky exclaims excitedly. "You're famous." We all roll our eyes at that. As if I didn't know. 

"But I thought my account was private." I say worriedly. However, checking, I realise it isn't. 

"It's too late to change it now, though." Aine says, always the voice of reason. "You'll just have to leave that as your public account and make one that's private for family and close friends." I lose my worried look slightly and relax, until I see Vicky and Prisha's faces. 

"What's wrong!?" The worry coming back with a vengeance. Vicky and Prisha exchange a glance and I see Prisha nod ever so slightly, before Vicky hands me her phone. "Read the comments on your more personal posts." I scroll through them, especially the photos of me playing guitar, and read all of the comments. lot of them are hate, and, from Vicky, Prisha and Aine's faces, I can tell they're anticipating my reaction. 

"'Just because you get one self-pitying song in the charts, doesn't make you famous. Everybody has bad moments, but only self-pitying idiots publicise them.'" Wow. That's harsh. Look at so many other pop stars who release songs about times when they haven't been at their best. Thinking back to the Em Lewis concert, I suddenly remember Em telling me that she would reply to my dms. I open up a new conversation and just send her a quick message. 'Hi. It's Georgia from your concert in London, who you gave your guitar.' Send. There. Hopefully she'll reply soon, and then I can ask her how she deals with hate. 

Just then, the bell rings for the end of lunch, and we head off to our next lessons. Aine and I both have Tech, in the same room, so I tell her how I've dealt with everything and she gives me a reassuring smile. 

"You'll deal with it, and you'll make sure it doesn't happen again, but you'll remember it forever. Just use the memory to your advantage." Aine would make such a good quote creator, if she ever gets famous. 

We get to Tech, and the lesson goes without a hitch. At break time, we head to the library to meet Vicky and Prisha and I almost immediately get my phone out to check my Instagram while Aine fills the other two in. I turn round in excitement when I see that she's replied. We go and sit down at one of the tables in the library and I show them what she's written. 'Hi Georgia. I heard your new song, and it's really good. As you've decided to message me, I guess something's up, so just let me know and I'll do my best to help.' I immediately start typing a reply, and go to hit send, but Vicky makes me let her check what I've written before sending it. 'I was just wondering how you deal with all of the hate on social media, as my account is public and I've had a couple of comments that haven't been the nicest. If you could look at my account and see the kind of comments and give me some advice, I would be really grateful.' 

The anticipation is high in all four of us during our next lesson, English, which we all have together, so none of us get any work done. We all want to know what Em's reply is and none of us seem to care that our exams are in only a few weeks. I have decided that I'm going to have a break from my singing lessons and recording sessions when I start study leave, and I will restart them during the summer holidays. 

Finally, the bell rings again, and we only just get out of the building before I get my phone out and check for a reply. 

"She's replied!" Prisha shouts excitedly. Everyone in earshot turns to look at us and I punch Prisha playfully on the arm for bringing more attention to us. 

"What did she say?" Vicky asks in anticipation. If she wasn't giving me respect, she would probably just snatch the phone straight out of my hand.

"She says 'My strategy was to turn off commenting on all of my posts although, if you wanted to delete your Instagram account until you learn to ignore it, a lot of people do that as well. If you want to arrange to call me so we can talk properly, my schedule is below.'"


	15. Friendship

"I'm here as well!" Vicky yells in my ear, even though her comment is directed at Mr Burns. Mr Burns turns to me and gives me a questioning look. 

"What are they doing here?" He asks, gesturing to Prisha, Vicky and Aine. I sigh. 

"I invited Aine because I though she'd like to see this place. Vicky and Prisha decided it would be fun to stalk me after Vicky's mum told her she needed to get out more." I roll my eyes. 

"Do I need to call the police?" He asks, genuinely concerned. I have to stifle a laugh. 

"No it's fine. They're my friends, I just didn't invite them. Can they wait somewhere until I'm done?" Mr Burns gets a slight gleam in his eye. 

"We'll see what musical skills they each have."

Vicky suddenly bursts into a song that none of us has heard before When she gets to the end of the section, Mr Burns interrupts. 

"What song is that?"

"Pie jesu." Vicky replies. We all stare at her, and she just laughs. However good friends we are, sometimes I feel like I will never understand her. 

"You have the potential to be ver-" Mr Burns starts, but Vicky interrupts. 

"No. Absolutely not. One thousand times no." Mr Burns retreats slightly. 

"Well. Let's get going then." He attempts to cover up the awkward conversation and we all traipse down the same corridor he took me down on my first day. I go into the recording studio door and everyone else goes into the door further down. 

In the recording studio, we start with Mr Burns finding out what instruments each of my friends. 

"I play drums!" Vicky exclaims excitedly. Mr Burns raises his eyebrows, so she marches out the door and into my half of the room and sits down at the drum kit. I smile. Mr Burns is in for a surprise. 

"OK then. Let's hear what you can do." Mr Burns says sceptically through the microphones connecting each half of the room. Vicky starts with a beat on the main drum, then adds in the cymbal and snare drum until she has an entire rhythm going. Mr Burns' face is hilarious.

"Does anybody else have any hidden talents?" He asks, kind of annoyed that the recording session has sort of gone off on a tangent. 

"I can play the bass." Aine says quietly, not liking being too loud. Mr Burns sighs. 

"Go on then." Aine comes and joins us and picks up the squire bass. She spends a while admiring it. She starts strumming the chords to Someone You Loved by Lewis Capaldi, and I start humming along, not wanting to take the spotlight away from her. Neat the end, Vicky starts drumming the rhythm, so I start singing properly and it sounds really cool. We get to the end and Mr Burns starts applauding. "It's lucky I started recording at the end there. That was amazing." He turns to Prisha. "What can you do?" She rolls her eyes and laughs. 

"Nothing musical. I'm the organiser and photographer and stuff. I keep Georgia's life in check." He shows the glimmer of a smile and turns back to me. 

"Come back in her then. We'll start recording when you're ready." Vicky and Aine leave and go back into the other room. I start singing my new original song,Moonlight. "The moon glows bright tonight, shining on the grass. It shines out bright tonight, but all I see is you." I look to Mr Burns for approval when I finish, and he nods, looking pleased. 

"That one's really good, Georgia." I smile appreciatively. 

"Thanks, Mr Burns." 

"As we're not at school, you can call me Jason. We don't need to be that formal."


	16. GCSEs

"We'll see you at your first exam. Don't spend too much time revising, and good luck." Mrs Goodall dismisses us, and we all flood out of the main hall and grab our bags with as much grace as our uniforms allow. 

As soon as we're out of the school gates, I tug my plaits out and smile at my friends. 

"We're free of the rules, almost." They smile as well, and we head back to Vicky's. Once we get there, we all get changed into a change of clothes, each with out own style. Vicky is wearing one of her Star Wars hoodies with black jeans, Aine is wearing a woolly jumper and a skirt, and Prisha is in a Tommy Hilfiger t-shirt and leggings. I am wearing my favourite hoody over my Star Wars top with black jeggings. "No more stupid uniform!" Vicky starts dancing around, but Aine, always the voice of reason, calms us down. 

"We still have to wear it for our exams, and we should all be revising. My first one's a week on Thursday, and you all have on on the Wednesday before that." I sigh. 

"That's very true, Aine. We can celebrate properly after all of our exams." I pull my German textbook out of my bag and stare at it, trying to remember all of the information I need. 

"Can we take it in turns to test each other? Active revision, people." I ask, quoting our study skills session. 

"Sure." Everyone agrees. 

*12 days later*

I make my way to my first exam, German writing, disappointed to be wearing the dreaded uniform again, and stressing out that I haven't revised enough. We had our listening, speaking and reading slightly earlier, but our writing is today. 

Sat in the main hall, trying not to stare around for fear of getting disqualified. I need these qualifications. If I get disqualified for thinking, I will never forgive myself. I try and think of the word for 'married', but can't seem to come up with it. I carry on, but it's not until the end that I remember what it is. Just as I go back and add it in, the examiner asks us to put our pens down and I do just that. 

My next exam is my Music appraising exam (basically the listening). I revised loads, and I remember lots of the content, mainly due to associating certain bits with stupid conversations we had in class, so I find most of it alright, especially the melody bits, but I find the 'choose the correct pitch' questions really hard. 

After Music is my first Tech one, which includes eco-friendly designing, a big thing nowadays, and ways of perfecting different products. That one also goes OK, but the one I'm worried about is RS, which is next. 

I hate RS because of all the quotes you have to remember if you want any hope of getting a grade 9. Of course, being me, anything less than a 9 will be disappointing, but I'll have to live with it. The first RS paper is about Islam beliefs and teachings. Each paper has a 1 mark multiple choice, a 2 mark describe question, a 4 mark explain q, a 5 mark q like the 4 mark one but you have to use a quote, and a 12 mark essay question. We have four papers to do, two for Islam and two for Christianity. 

The maths and further maths one I enjoy, because I'm strange and love sitting in a silent room doing maths, and I enjoy the sciences because they're really interesting. Another one I'm stressed about is English, as it's my only proper essay subject, and I'm terrible at essays. However, I think it goes okay, especially the literature one, which is slightly more interesting. 

We all have our last exam at the same time, as it's maths, a core subject. When we are finally dismissed, we run outside and I wait by the wall outside reception for Aine, Vicky and Prisha. This time, we're all going to my house to celebrate the actual end of school. We were planning to ceremoniously burn our uniforms, but none of our parents let us, as it's really expensive and we can sell it to get a bit of money. We do, however, throw them across my bedroom once we're all changed, until we realise there's also a uniform for the sixth form at BGSG, which we're all going to. 

Wanting to do something celebratory, we shove all the books we will never need again up into our attic, as it's the biggest. I only keep my Maths, Tech and Physics down, as that is what I'm taking for A level. Aine keeps her History, English and RS down, as she wants to be a historian, Prisha keeps her Food Tech, chemistry and biology (she wants to be a chef) and Vicky only keeps her English as she is also taking psychology and philosophy, which we haven't had the chance to study yet. 

The rest will probably live in our attic until it's cleared out in a few million years, but I don't really want to get rid of them just yet.


	17. Vicky's Birthday

The next big event to happen is Vicky's birthday, 4th July. Our exams finished on 28th June, so we're having a massive birthday/end of exam party at Vicky's. We're having a sleepover, but with the entire form. Vicky had to do a lot of persuading to get her mum to allow her to have this, as we've taken over the entire ground floor of their house, but we got there eventually. 

The living room has fabric strung from the ceiling to make it look like a massive tent, and the sofas are covered in blankets and cushions. In the kitchen, Elizabeth (Vicky's Mum) has put banners saying 'HAPPY BIRTHDAY' and 'NO MORE SCHOOL' around the walls, and has just left out a whole load of food to last us until the morning. The last bit is in the conservatory, as some people also have to sleep in there. It isn't really decorated, as most of it is glass, but there are lots of pillows, cushions and blankets to make it really comfy. I feel kind of bad, because Elizabeth had to shut Ellie and Ash, Vicky's two dogs, in the utility room. She didn't bother shutting Mary- the cat- in there, as she would just have escaped anyway. 

As we're still underage, we start with a toast to the end of school, but only drink coke, squash or water instead of alcohol. If Vicky had her way, we would have alcohol, but all of our parents, except for a few, said no.

After the toast, we play wink murder in a massive circle in the living room. Vicky starts as the murderer and Nysa has to try and guess who it is. Vicky 'kills' me first, so I make a promise to myself, as I die as dramatically as I can, to kill her first when I'm the murderer. 

I end up murderer near the end of the game and keep my promise, laughing to myself as Vicky tries to out-die me with a dramatic death. It turns out I am the last murderer, as we're all really hungry, so we go and get some dinner. 

For dinner, we have the traditional sleepover delicacy of pizza, then we put on the new Star Wars movie, which Vicky got this morning as one of her birthday presents. It's amazing! I love Stars Wars, although not as much as Vicky, and it's really good. It doesn't live up to the original series though. 

We finally start to fall asleep at about 3 in the morning. Aine didn't come, as she's not in our form, so she's coming over tomorrow when everyone else has gone. Vicky, Prisha and I are the last people to fall asleep, too excited for tomorrow and high on adrenaline from the sleepover so far. 

By 11 in the morning, everyone has gone, except for the three of us. Elizabeth comes back downstairs and asks us how it went, then looks at the table in surprise as she realises we cleared all the food she laid out last night. 

"I laid out enough food to feed all of Westbury, and you girls cleared it between 30 of you." She exclaims. "Were you hungry, or did you just feel obliged to clear it?" We look at each other and laugh. 

"A bit of both, I think." Vicky replies, still laughing. Elizabeth shakes her head before walking over to free the dogs, and Prisha jumps up on the sofa and cowers away, terrified of them after being knocked over by one when she was 4. I laugh. 

"They're fine, Prisha. They won't hurt you." I try and reassure her, but my attempts fail. 

"She's trying to eat me." She screams in alarm, as Ash, the younger of the two dogs, comes running in to try and get attention. 

"She won't eat you, Prisha," I promise. "Look" I walk up to Ash and stroke her trying to avoid being licked by her slobbering tongue. 

Aine arrives at about 12, and manages to distract Ash so that Prisha can actually get off the sofa for a while before she gets picked up at half two. I'm the next one to leave, a Mum picks me up at 3. Aine had planned to be picked up at about half past, so we see her Dad going to pick her up on the way home.


	18. City Hall

The day of the 'concert' at the City Hall finally comes around. Jason told me that we could each perform 3 songs, so I dm-ed Em Lewis to get her permission to perform two of her songs, Babe, Let's Party and Pretty Money. The other song I am performing is my original one, Shoulder to Cry On. 

Stood in the wings waiting to go on, the nerves I feel suddenly turn into adrenaline as I watch the end of this act. I think his name's Josh, and he's kind of hot. I met him at one of the rehearsals and we talked a little bit. He's really nice. He's also really really good at singing, as his act proves. 

I know Aine, Vicky and Prisha are in the audience somewhere, sat with my parents and waiting in anticipation. Somehow, that thought gives e comfort and, when my name is announced, I'm not an utter pile of nerves. This is only the second time I've sung in front of more than, like, 10 people, so it's still quite nerve-racking, but I try and act like I've got lots of confidence as I walk on stage and pick up the mic. The announcer's voice sounds over the speakers as he introduces my first song. 

"And now, with her number 1 hit, Shoulder to Cry On, it's Georgia Westbury." The crowd cheers and I smile. My nerves have vanished. As I strum the first chords on my guitar, I glance over to the box where my parents and friends are sat. My brother is making weird faces, my parents are smiling at me, and Aine and Prisha are glancing at each other with worried look on their faces. Where's Vicky!? Thinking about it, that's probably why Aine and Prisha looked so worried.

I sing the first words of the song on autopilot, which brings me out of my thoughts so that I can put energy into it. I properly perform it for the first time ever, and I have the time of my life. Why was I ever scared of performing? It's what I was made to do. That's what runs through my head as I entertain the sold-out crowd of 600 in London. Looking back at that sentence, it looks really lame, but that's my life. 

Finishing Shoulder to Cry on, I move onto Babe, Let's Party, before handing my guitar to one of the stage hands in the wings and sitting down at the piano. 

Playing the intro, I start thinking about Pretty Money. I love this song, as it was one of the first I learned to play on piano and sing along with. 

I finish that one, and walk off stage to the crowd cheering. I see Josh waiting for me and smile. 

"You were really good out there, Josh. Where do you get inspiration for all of your songs?" 

"You were good as well Georgia." I smile. "But in answer to your question, I base them off life and the life of my best friends." 

"I tried that," I reply, trying to keep the conversation going as long as possible, "but all I came up with was Shoulder to Cry On." He shakes his head, laughing. 

"That one's amazing. You need to stop doubting yourself, Georgia." Now it's my turn to laugh. 

"That's exactly what Mr Burns said to me when I first met him." Josh goes to reply, but at that moment we hear-

"So once, when we were about 12, just before the end of year 7, Georgia tried hurdles, but ended up on her hands and knees the other side." I cringe and groan simultaneously. 

"Vicky. Noooooooooo." Josh laughs. 

"She's good though, however embarrassing you find her. Did that actually happen?"

Later, I find Vicky when we're back at home and confront her. 

"What were you thinking!? You ruined my romantic talk with Josh." She starts laughing at the first statement, but quickly stops after the second one. 

"Wait. Back up. Who's Josh?" I smile, glad to be back on firm (ish) ground. 

"He's this guy I met at City Hall. I met him at one of the rehearsals, and then we had a proper conversation at the side of the wings before you told that story." 

"Hey, I'm sorry, Georgia. But the crowd loved it." I smile. 

"OK. They did. But you're still in trouble."


	19. Results

GCSE Results day comes around quicker than any of us would like. I arranged with Prisha, Aine and Vicky to meet up before we get our results, so I wait at the front gate. Vicky comes up from the left at the same time as Aine and Prisha come from the other way.

"Let's go." We walk down the drive, immersed in our thoughts and quite happy in the silence. Just before we go into the hall, we pause. It feels wrong to say too much, but I just say "Good Luck."

We carry on into the hall and wait as a group for the teachers to give us our envelopes. Vicky gets hers first, followed by Prisha, Aine and, finally, me.

"OK. Ready? Three. Two. One. Open" We all tear the seals at the same time and pull out the piece of paper. We're right in the corner to try and avoid any attention, as I really don't want the world knowing my GCSE grades. Vicky is the first to read hers, and squeals in surprise.

"I got 7, 7, 9, 7, 6, 8, 6, 8, 6, 8 and a 7 in Latin." I smile.

"That's really good Vicky." She looks at me curiously.

"Have you read yours yet?" I shake my head slightly and nod at Aine and Prisha to indicate that I want them to say theirs first.

"I got 6, 9, 8, 7, 6, 7, 9, 7, 8, 8." Aine says quietly. No one likes sharing their results, but we made a pact at the start of the year that we'd do them in this order, an we'd all say them.

"I got 8, 6, 7, 7, 6, 8, 9, 7, 7, 9" Prisha says, the one of us who least likes sharing results, especially as she usually sees them as bad. Finally, it's my go.

"I got 9, 7, 7, 8, 8, 9, 9, 8, 7, 8, 6 in Further Maths and 8 in Latin." I'm slightly disappointed with the 6, 7s and even 8s, but that's my high standards talking, and I have everything I need for the university I want to go to if my singing career doesn't takeoff.

"That's amazing, Georgia. Mrs Dawson will be quite annoyed." Vicky says. I laugh.

"Nah. I think she quite liked me by the end of the year. Anyway, don't talk teachers. Mrs Goodall's coming over." They turn to face the direction I'm facing as Mrs Goodall comes over.

"You've all done very well, girls. You've all gotten higher than your target grades in 4 subjects, and you're all had other things going on as well, making your high grades even more amazing. I'm sure your subject teachers are very proud of all four of you."

We stand talking for a bit longer, making conversation with anyone we know who walks past. We see Nysa, who is really happy with her results, and I give her a hug, because that's a thing we do. 

Mr Baker, my Maths teacher, wanders over to see how we all did. He quickly congratulates Aine, Vicky and Prisha, because he didn't teach them, but he turns to talk to me. 

"How did you do, Georgia?" He asks me. All of my teachers know about my deal now, so I'm pretty sure they all think I've done really badly due to my extracurricular commitments. 

"I got a 9 in Maths and a 6 in Further Maths." He smiles. 

"That's really good, Georgia, particularly the Further Maths. That paper's known for being really hard. But, just because I'm your Maths teacher, doesn't mean I'm not interested in your other subjects." I smile and thank him, then just show him the piece of paper instead of reading it aloud. 

"Your results are incredible, Georgia, especially with what you've had on your plate over the last few months. You must be really proud of yourself." He's really nice, but he's making quite a song and dance about it, and is drawing a lot of unwanted attention to our corner of the hall. 

"I am, Mr Baker. Thank you." He smiles again and walks off, and I sigh with relief. I turn back to my friends, who have been waiting for me to finish my conversation, an we make our way out of the hall to go home and tell our parents the good news. 

When we get outside, it turns out that news reporters can use their brains, as they've worked out that I'm getting my results today. I wasn't expecting anything like this, so I've just dressed casually. That'll probably be mocked by whatever papers actually want to waste their time and paper on me. 

One reporter comes at me as soon as I walk out the door. 

This is a big day for you, Georgia. How do you feel after seeing your results?" Before I get the chance to reply, Vicky starts talking. 

"We all know this is just a ploy to find out Georgia's results." The reporter's face brightens, but drops again as Vicky carries on. "Well, you're not going to get them. Now, get out of the way so we can go home for some peace." All of the reporters retreat, and we all head home. I go via Vicky's to try and throw the journalists off of the scent because, as of yet, they don't know where my house is, and I intend to keep it that way.


	20. Popular

"Are you Georgia Westbury?" I spin in surprise, whacking Vicky in the face with my ponytail in the process. 

"Yeeessssss..." I say in confusion, before recovering myself quickly. "Who's asking?" The random stranger stood in front of me raises an eyebrow and backs away slightly. 

"Oh." They say shyly. "I'm Emma. I heard your song on the radio last night and... OMG! I loved it!" I sigh internally. She's one of those girls who sounds like every sentence ends in an exclamation mark, and abbreviates everything. 

"Thank you." I reply, slightly confused as to where this conversation might be going. 

"Can I get your ANS and a pic? My friends will be soooooo jealous!" I smile robotically as she holds out her phone for a selfie, before snatching a quick glance at Vicky. i have no idea what an ANS is. She mimes scribbling on a piece of paper and I catch on. The A must stand for autograph. Emma hands me a scrap of paper and a pen and I hurriedly scribble my unprofessional signature and hand it back, wanting to get rid of her as soon as possible. 

However, a flash in the corner of my eye catches my attention. I glance up and have to do a double- take. There's a massive crowd gathered with loads of people right at the front taking pictures and waving pens and paper in the air. Journalists are dotted around yelling questions left, right and centre, and so much is happening that I don't know where to look. 

OK. Maybe it's not a massive crowd. Not even a crowd. Two people. 

I quickly scribble my signature on their paper as well, checking quickly to make sure they're not binding contracts, and then Vicky and I move on. 

"Well," I say when I'm sure we're well clear of the 'crowd'. "That was interesting." I can't believe I thought they were a massive crowd. There were two people there. I feel like such an idiot. 

I tell Vicky about all this and she laughs kindly. 

"You're going mad, Georgia. Maybe fame is getting to your head." She taps the top of my head gently and we both laugh. We have a look round the Christmas market. We look at a few of the shops as well, admiring the Christmas lights. When Mum told me that we were coming to Birmingham today, I was so excited and I'm so glad Vicky came along too. 

We head to the car park to meet Mum, Dad and Luke, who was adamant that he come with us to visit our cousin, June who goes to university here. 

Seeing her was really nice, because we don't get to see her very often, as it's nearly a three hour train journey here, and it's about £110 return. We have quite a lot in common, but she's really pretty, and could be a model if she wanted to be.

Dear Diary, Today was really fun. We went to Birmingham with Vicky to visit June, and we also went to the Christmas market, which was amazing. I got recognised by three people on the street, who told me how much they liked my song. It was amazing. I did go slightly mad and imagine there was an entire crowd with journalists and everything, when actually there were only two people, but still. It's a start. Vicky told me I was going mad, but hey, we're all weird and unique in our own way (that sounds really cheesy. Oh well.)

At school the next day, Mr Farrell, the new music teacher, asks me about joining choir. I don't do any extracurricular clubs, as I need as much free time as I can get. Somewhere near the back of my mind I wondered if he would ask, because I also take music, so it would make sense. 

"Georgia, can I speak to you for a sec?" He asks. I glance at Louisa, whom I sit next to, and she shrugs. I get up and follow Mr Farrell out of the room, and turn to face him the corridor. 

"I know you must be busy," He starts, "But I just wondered if you've debated joining choir, because I think you'd be an asset. Not just because you are now, technically a pop star, but because I think you have a beautiful voice." Part of me wants to recoil in horror at all the compliments he just put in two sentences, and part of me actually debates it. 

"I'll think about it." He smiles.

"Thanks, Georgia. Maybe you could let me know tomorrow?"

"Sure," I reply, and I head off to meet Aine

Back at home, I take out my diary and start writing an entry. 

Dear Diary, Today at school, Mr Farrell asked me to join choir. I wasn't really sure, as I enjoy my lunchtimes with my friends, but, after debating it with Vicky, I've decided that I will. I'm so glad Vicky, Aine, Prisha and I all came to the same sixth form, as I'm not sure how I'd get along on my own. I know I'd make new friends, but it's nice to have them around me. 

At the moment, I don't have much more to write, so I put my diary back under my mattress and grab my laptop to do my homework. We have to write a specification for the product we're making in Tech, and I have practice questions to do for Physics. We'll probably get Maths homework tomorrow as well, so I want to get as much done as possible.


	21. Invitation

You don't wanna be silent like me...

I pick up my phone in one hand, holding my book in the other. 

"Hello?" I didn't recognise the number, but it didn't look like a typical business one. 

"Is that Georgia Westbury?" The voice on the other end of the line replies. Maybe I was wrong. 

"Yes, that's me." I say sceptically. If they start asking me if I've been in a car accident that wasn't my fault, I will hang up straight away. 

"Good. Are your parent to hand?" What on earth do they want my parents to hand for?

"Yes, they're just here." 

"Good. I am from Paradise Recording Studios. We have had an offer for you to be a support act for a well-known pop star. In order for you to make an unbiased decision, we will not disclose their name until we have your choice. If you would like to reply now, we will need to speak to your parents to check this is OK." OMG!

"I would love to! I will pass you over to my Mum." I hand the phone over to Mum and turn to Dad excitedly. 

"Someone's offered me the opportunity to be a support act on their tour, but they would't tell me who so that it didn't affect me decision." Dad smiles. 

"Well Done, Georgia. That's amazing. Will you be able to catch up at school though?" I roll my eyes and laugh. 

"I'll be fine, Dad. The money from this will be quite good as well. Maybe I'll be able to buy my own Christmas presents next year." I joke. I haven't been able to get a job yet, apart from the deal, so it's a standing joke in our household that my parents always pay for the Christmas presents I give. Hopefully, with the money coming in from Shoulder to Cry On being streamed, and the money from this, I'll be able to buy my own next year. 

Dad laughs. "Maybe you will. But we'll have to wait and see if Mum agrees first." Right on cue, Mum offers the phone back to me and mouths 'I've agreed' at me. I give her a thumbs up and a smile and take the phone from her. 

"Hello." I say, trying to contain my excitement. It fails. 

"Now that it's all settled, I can tell you who it is. The artist who's offered to pay you to support her on tour is Isla Morgan, of Paradise Recording Studios." I gasp audibly and I can tell the lady on the other end laughs. "She would like to meet you on Saturday to organise what you can and can't sing, and all the arrangements with regards to your education." 

"Thank you." I manage to say, speechless at the opportunity that has been laid before me. 

"Goodbye." She says, before hanging up. I put the phone back and turn to Mum and Dad. 

"It's Isla Morgan." Their faces give them away. 

"It can't be!" 

"It is."

*Saturday*

I walk into the meeting room with adrenaline coursing through me. I can't believe I'm going to meet Isla Morgan. It's even more exciting than meeting Em Lewis. She's my favourite artist, followed closely by Em, but she hasn't released anywhere near as many songs as Em has, and hasn't been on tour before. 

As I sit down, she walks in the door. I stand up again so that I can greet her properly, and she smiles kindly at me. 

"You must be Georgia Westbury." I smile and nod. 

"I am." I am totally in awe. She's so beautiful and elegant and makes everything looks effortless. 

"I've heard so much about you from Jason. He's obsessed with your voice, and for very good reason. Your song, Shoulder to Cry On, is amazing." I blush, embarrassed.

"Thank you very much." She laughs. 

"We can't keep up with such formalities. Let's get to know each other more before we discuss business." 

For the next half an hour, we exchange facts about ourselves and our lives, and get to know each other really well. I even tell her about my crush on Josh from the City Hall concert. Then we get down to discussing business. 

"So, I know most of my tour is in the Easter holidays, but will you be alight catching up the rest of your schoolwork? I know how challenging A Levels can be."

"I'll be fine. It won't be too much, hopefully." 

"Right. Well, I can check that bullet point off. Now, what are you going to play?" I've thought about this a lot, so can reply almost instantly. 

"I'll play three of my original songs, including Shoulder to Cry On right at the end. I can also message Em Lewis and see if she and her record label will be okay with me playing a couple of her songs, but I'm hoping to have another few original songs by then. How long is the slot?"

"It doesn't have a specific time, but roughly five or six songs is good, especially by the time you've interacted with the crowd a bit as well." Wow. She is very efficient when she's working on business. 

"Perfect. Is there anything else?" 

"No. I think that's all. Have a Merry Christmas, and see you on the 25th March."


	22. Christmas

I run down the stairs on Christmas Day, excited to see what's under the tree. I know I'm 17, but I can still get excited about Christmas. At the bottom of the stairs, I realise Luke has beaten me to it. I sit on the sofa waiting for Mum and Dad and stare at the few Christmas cards I've had from my fans. That's a new concept. I never thought of myself as having fans. 

Mum and Dad come down the stairs and grab their Christmas hats out of the box and I smile happily. Christmas is my favourite holiday, because it's all about family and friends and the good times you have together. Reading that back, that sounds really cheesy, but I'm going to leave it there. Why not?

We sit around the tree in our traditional format, and Luke starts by opening his first present. It's from Mum and Dad, and it's a toy lightsaber. That was the main thing on his list, which was surprising, as it wasn't actually that expensive. I start a fresh page in my Christmas notebook and write down what he got and who it was from. 

We carry on around, going to me, Mum and then Dad. I love the job of writing down everything, because it's really organised and efficient. 

We get through all of the presents by lunchtime, and sit around the table stuffing our faces for over an hour. Dad always overcooks, but somehow we still manage to eat it all. None of us want to move afterwards though. 

After lunch, we sit down in the living room and watch the Queen's speech. Usually, Luke will build whatever LEGO he gets, but he only got one set this year, so he's going to wait until this evening to build it. 

Marie and June, my aunt and cousin, come around just after the Queen's speech, having eaten lunch at our Nan and Grandad's. They open their presents from us that we left under our tree, and they give us each a small present that they wanted to watch us open. I add these to my Christmas notebook an chuck it on my desk in my bedroom, before getting comfortable on the sofa ready to watch the Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special. Mum watched Call the Midwife this afternoon, and Luke built his LEGO aeroplane. He's obsessed with planes at the moment, and even got a model one from Hamley's earlier on today. However, he never builds models, so it's almost more a present for Dad than him. 

We sit on the sofa well into the evening, none of us wanting to move due to the massive dinner we all had. Only Luke does anything, sitting on the floor and playing with all of his new stuff. It's a wonder he doesn't throw up, bending over like that for the entire afternoon. 

Finally, at about 10, I retire to bed. Luke went up at about half 9, but I'm tired, so go upstairs and get into my pyjamas. I can't wear the new ones I got, as they are still under the tree. 

I sit in bed for a while, wondering how Christmas can be over already. It's strange, because the build up to it is massive, but it lasts a day and then it's gone. 

I roll over and shut my eyes, and fall asleep within minutes.


	23. Tour

I walk on stage to the applause of 20 000 people and smile. This is what I've been building up to for the past six months. This is what I've wanted for a long time. OK, they're not here for me, but I'm here for them. I look at the front row and see Mum, Dad, Luke and Vicky, Aine and Prisha. Even Josh is there. Has he actually come to see me? I almost blush at the thought. Turning my attention to my job, I strum the first chords of my first song. All of my set list is made up of original songs now, as I have 5, and this is my first one. 

"This is called 'Moonlight'." Vicky helped me write the lyrics for this, as she's amazing at English, and it's really nice. I love the music I've chosen for it as well, although I start wishing that I'd played it on piano instead. The crowd applaud at the end of the song, and they look like they're waiting to see what I might play next. 

"How are you, London?" I say into the microphone. "Are you excited for tonight's show? I've had a preview and I think your gonna love it!" I sound so much more confident when I'm in front of lots of people, as the crowd is just a faceless mass, rather than a few people, all of whom I know, staring avidly at me while I play. However much I love music, that is very creepy. 

My second song I play is called 'Be your own Kind of Beautiful'. It's about accepting yourself for yourself and learning to be proud of who you are. I wrote this one from personal experience, as I've never really been confident in myself or my abilities, and I know lots of people who can relate to it. 

The third and fourth songs I play go by in a blur. I hate how every time you do something you really enjoy, time seems to quadruple in speed, and how when you're really bored, time slows down massively. Then again, I guess it doesn't actually. It's probably something to do with psychology. 

"Get ready, London. I just have one more song, and then Isla Morgan will be on this stage. ARE YOU READY??" I yell the last sentence, captivated myself by the atmosphere in the arena. It's amazing. Whatever I imagined, it was not this. 

I notice my friends and family looking awestruck, not used to seeing me this confident, especially in front of so many people. Another reason why I love music. You can just forget about who's watching you and live in the moment. 

I finish my set with Shoulder to Cry On, as it is the most famous one, and I stand there listening to the applause and watching as the crowd slowly get to their feet. This is why I signed up for this. This feeling of being appreciated by people for who I am, even if I don't appreciate myself yet. They start shouting 'encore', but, following Isla's instructions, I walk of the stage, a massive smile etched on my face, wish her good luck, and head to my seat with my parents.


End file.
